


beyond my own happiness and intimacy

by coruscantguard (nadiavandyne), nadiavandyne



Series: 2020 Fic Challenges [15]
Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008) - All Media Types
Genre: Coruscant Underworld (Star Wars), F/F, Fluff, Light Angst, Pantora, Please..., Pre-Relationship, Whumptober 2020, Worldbuilding
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-08
Updated: 2020-10-08
Packaged: 2021-03-08 00:09:31
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 534
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26896474
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nadiavandyne/pseuds/coruscantguard, https://archiveofourown.org/users/nadiavandyne/pseuds/nadiavandyne
Summary: Riyo feels safe, that's the thing.After the chaos of the morning, after the assassination attempt and the fear and the running, after watching Ahsoka nearly take a man's head off and being smuggled to the lower levels to hide—She still, somehow, feels safe.
Relationships: Riyo Chuchi/Rafa Martez
Series: 2020 Fic Challenges [15]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1810486
Comments: 1
Kudos: 8
Collections: Whumptober 2020





	beyond my own happiness and intimacy

Riyo feels safe, that's the thing.

After the chaos of the morning, after the assassination attempt and the fear and the running, after watching Ahsoka nearly take a man's head off and being smuggled to the lower levels to hide—

She still, somehow, feels safe. 

It's probably because of the fact that the laundromat has a kind of comforting warm stillness that reminds her of Pantora, of cold winter nights and burrowing deep into the warm clothes just removed from the dryer. It reminds her of Tula's stern disapproval melting into good-natured amusement when she went through the laundry just to find Riyo napping in them, and how they did their best to keep Pantora's bitingly chilly nights at bay but still ended up curling up in piles of comforters when night would fall. How Poko and her would drape the blankets over themselves and pretend to be ghosts, and that one time they decided to cut eye holes into every blanket so the whole household could play with them. 

Tula had not been very happy with them for that little stunt, that's for sure. 

"Please," Riyo suddenly hears herself say, and it's uncertain, shaky, everything she'd thought she left behind on Ordo Plutonia. "Could I use your comm? My cousin—" and she cuts herself off there, not sure how to vocalize her worries and her doubts and what she hopes and what she fears.. She hates it, hates _this_ , but—

For all of her earlier grumbling about politicians and Jedi and stupid younger sisters with stupid bleeding hearts, Lady Martez has let her stay here, hadn't just told Ahsoka _no way, not happening_. She had told Riyo to ask if she needed anything, and while it probably was just a courtesy offer, she is... worried, for Poko. She's seen Major Thire and his men at work, know that they're the best of the best, but...

Poke has always been good at getting into trouble, and her bleeding heart for strangers is a far-cry from the traditional Pantoran policy of family first, a far-cry from the values that helped the early Pantorans survive and grow to thrive, and Riyo worries for her.

Lady Martez startles, looking up from her textbook, and her curly hair flops in her face. She flips it back with a head toss. "My— oh, yeah, sure, whatever," she says, reaching down to grab it out of the bag that sits at her feet, and tossing it at Riyo's head. "Go wild."

Riyo manages to catch it, but just barely, her years of hi-lo ball during her schooling coming into play at exactly the right time. "Thank you," she says softly, and Lady Martez shrugs casually, waving it off, focusing back on the textbook. And Riyo—

Riyo looks down at the comm, turns it on, and focuses on contacting Poko. Reminds herself that the only reason she's here is because Ahsoka decided it was the best place to hide while she tracked down the assassin that wants Riyo's head. Reminds herself that Lady Martez's kindness is nothing but a favor to her sister's friend, that after this, they'll never meet again.

This odd feeling of safety will just be for today. 

**Author's Note:**

> \- Happy Whumptober Day 8! Have a less angsty fic as an apology for the last two fics, lol. 
> 
> \- The title is from the _Selected Letters of E.M. Forster I: 1879-1920_
> 
> \- Come talk to me on Tumblr [@coruscantguard!](https://coruscantguard.tumblr.com/)


End file.
